The board president of Evanston Township High School District 202 is pressing New Trier District 203 to join a formal partnership against racism and homophobia in school athletics.
Pat Savage-Williams, ETHS District 202 board president, issued the call in a guest essay published Tuesday, Oct. 27, in the Evanston Roundtable. She wrote that ETHS has concluded its investigation into alleged racial and homophobic slurs directed at ETHS marching band members during the Oct. 16 football game at Northwestern's Ryan Field. The district shared its findings with New Trier's administration.
"We must collectively commit to eradicating the racism and homophobia that our young people face," Savage-Williams wrote.
Savage-Williams did not disclose what the investigation found or whether any students were identified. She wrote that the district reviewed the incident and fulfilled its responsibilities to the students involved.
What ETHS students reported
ETHS students alleged that New Trier fans directed racial slurs, homophobic language and vulgar insults at marching band and color guard members during and after the Oct. 16 game. Bob Chiarito reported the student accounts for the Evanston RoundTable, which shared the story with The Record North Shore.
Adrie Lieberman, a 17-year-old ETHS senior and four-year color guard member, told the RoundTable that while the group stood in the end zone before performing, students in the New Trier section screamed profanities, homophobic slurs and the N-word at them. She said some band members had trash thrown at them.
A second encounter allegedly occurred as band members walked to their buses. Lieberman said two of her Black friends reported that fans who "appeared to be students" spat on them and told them to "go back to Africa."
ETHS band director Matthew Bufis said he did not witness the incidents but that multiple students filed reports with Northwestern. A Northwestern spokesperson confirmed the university received multiple reports and referred them to New Trier because the individuals involved were not university students.
New Trier's response so far
New Trier and ETHS superintendents Peter Tragos and Marcus Campbell announced a joint investigation on Oct. 18. At a New Trier Board of Education meeting the following day, board president Sally Tomlinson said the behavior "must be unequivocally condemned and addressed," according to New Trier News.
Tragos apologized and said the administration would work with its Belonging Council and student groups. Over morning announcements Thursday, Oct. 22, Tragos and Winnetka Campus Principal Denise Dubravec urged students to reflect on the incident, according to New Trier News.
In an Oct. 23 update, Tragos said New Trier was continuing its investigation in collaboration with ETHS. The sources reviewed for this report do not include a subsequent announcement of New Trier’s findings.
Outside pressure mounting
Cook County Commissioner Scott Britton wrote to Tragos on Oct. 21 calling for accountability, according to The Evanstonian. Britton said this was "not the first allegation of racialized bullying within the NTHS sports program" to reach his attention.
Jennifer Sadler, an ETHS parent whose daughter captains the color guard, told the New Trier board her daughter felt "uncomfortable" attending the meeting after being bullied online. Sadler said she would consider filing a Title VI and IX complaint if the administrations did not take sufficient action.
IHSA Executive Director Craig Anderson said Oct. 20 that the association would decide on next steps based on the schools' findings. No subsequent IHSA announcement was located in the sources reviewed as of Oct. 29.
